On a dreary day that saw the nation coated in rain, television star Myleene Klass provided a welcome ray of sunshine today when she presented the 400,000th National Lottery grant to a Welsh charity.

The singer spent the morning with television presenter Matt Johnson in Merthyr Tydfil getting a glimpse of the exceptional community work taking place in the town before presenting a £980,037 grant to Voluntary Action Merthyr Tydfil.

Beginning the day with a group of toddlers from the Cylch Meithrin Soar, Klass joined in with a morning session of building blocks before being quizzed on her Welsh knowledge.

And after speaking some Welsh words and singing the lullaby Suo Gun, she was presented with a patriotic dragon toy by youngsters from the project that helps two to five year olds learn Welsh.

The 34 year old presenter, who first entered the spotlight as a member of the band Hear’Say, met with local mothers from Gellideg Foundation Group.

The group is made up of parents from a local housing estate who decided to try to create a better life for their children by setting up a disco. It is now a charity with a turnover in excess of £1m.

Klass said: “The mums group I met, I’m completely inspired by them. They are just real go getters and do-ers.

“What they’ve done is they’ve come up with a way of really benefiting the community and as a mum myself, they are exactly my kind of people – those women are super women.”

But the main event saw Klass present Voluntary Action Merthyr Tydfil with a grant for £980,037 in front of cameras and a captivated Canolfan Soar theatre audience.

The money will be used to help around 2,500 people during the next four years develop their own skills and confidence through a range of volunteering opportunities.

And the day was made even sweeter for Ian Davy, the charity’s chief executive, when he was informed this was a landmark 400,000th grant issued by the National Lottery.

After presenting the instantly recognisable blue crossed finger award to Mr Davy, Klass spoke to those involved in the project before giving a short musical rendition on a harp to the theatre’s audience.

“I’m delighted to present the 400,000th National Lottery grant to Voluntary Action Merthyr Tydfil,” said the singer.

“All these groups, I think, are phenomenal because if your hard work goes unnoticed, it can be demoralising.

“I love Merthyr, I’ve been here a million and one times. For me, it’s wonderful to see that this charity is getting recognised for the great work it does and I’m sure it will continue.”

Even the weather failed to lower Klass’ spirits, with her smile ever present as she walked the streets dressed in a salmon-pink dress under a navy-blue umbrella.

Klass and Johnson also spent time talking to Dowlais Football project and the Merthyr Community Opera Project, both of which are projects striving to support and improve Merthyr through sport and the musical arts.

And the pair of celebrities were in high spirits throughout the day as they learnt about the positives that can often be overlooked in the town.

Johnson, who grew up in Caerphilly, said the charity deserved this milestone grant in recognition of the work it does within Merthyr and hoped the whole occasion would improve the image of what he called “a great community”.

He said: “I just think it’s fantastic. Any sort of funding that can boost the moral of a community is fantastic and I’m all for it. To find out that the lottery would give money to these kind of cases is fantastic.

“Today is about putting Merthyr in the spotlight for a good reason. We’re in a recession, people need to be lifted and if I can be part of that then that’s fantastic.”